


Kindred Spirits

by FunkyinFishnet



Category: Torchwood
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-03-02
Updated: 2010-03-02
Packaged: 2017-10-07 15:53:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/66671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FunkyinFishnet/pseuds/FunkyinFishnet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Martha can't understand why Ianto doesn't like her whilst Ianto can't work out why Jack has changed and what Martha has to do with it. A story of how a different perspective can help you to move on. My version of how Martha's time in Torchwood could have gone.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The first things Martha noticed when she woke up was that Jack's coat had been thrown over her like a blanket and that someone had left a mug of hot coffee close by on the desk. The smell was what had woken her up and before her eyes were even properly open, Martha had sat up and reached for the mug.

The coffee tasted amazing, and Martha immediately felt more awake. How did people wake up without caffeine? Especially when it tasted this good. She knew just from the taste who had made this particular cup. It was too early for it to be anyone else, except Jack and she'd found out that the only coffee he could make was tar black and bitter and completely undrinkable.

The Hub was quiet, she could see that most of the workstations were dark. A note in Jack's scrawl tucked into one of her discarded shoes reminded her of the time they'd agreed to meet at the firing range for some practice, and told her to give his love to her boyfriend, Tom, when she emailed him. Martha grinned and shook her head, she had no idea what Tom would make of Jack if they ever met. It was a pretty hilarious thought.

But before she started on her morning email to her boyfriend, Martha decided as she felt the caffeine doing its job, she wanted to track down her benefactor and she knew just the place to do it.

When she'd gotten dressed and looked more presentable (sleeping on the sofa in Jack's office had not produced a good look for her), she made her way to the kitchen area and, as she'd suspected, found Ianto Jones setting out mugs and spoons on the counter. Martha leant against the door and watched him for a bit, keeping out of sight.

Ianto confused and frustrated her. She knew that she felt sorry for him; she'd been stuck with unpleasant jobs at the hospital, the ones that everyone hated. And she'd never seen any of the team say anything to Ianto about it as he worked on in the background, or ask him if he needed help. Owen got down right abusive towards him sometimes. She'd had that happen too and it always stung.

Ianto though, he seemed to be shut off into his own little world, attached to the team but not part of it. She'd never seen him upset about his job, he just did it. It all slid off him.

But Martha could tell that Ianto Jones didn't like her. She'd seen it in the way he looked at her, like he couldn't wait for her to leave. She had past experience of that too. But she couldn't work out what she'd done to deserve it, he'd been like that since she'd first stepped into Torchwood. That was why it was more than a little confusing that he'd left her a good cup of coffee for when she woke up.

Martha suddenly glanced down at her cup, hit by the nasty memory of what one of the hospital residents used to do to the interns he didn't like. Had Ianto spat in the coffee? She wrinkled her nose at the thought, but decided that it didn't really matter when she'd drunk half a cup of it already. She could always get a fresh one and watch him make it herself.

"Morning, Ianto," she called quietly as she stepped into the kitchen.

Ianto paused, his spine stiffening, before he turned around to face her. Martha moved closer, keeping a small smile on her face as she blocked his exit. Oh yes, he really didn't like her. He didn't even react like that when handing Owen his coffee as Owen said something particularly obscene. It was only her that got a reaction like that.

His expression had already closed up, and Martha itched to grab him by his immaculate suit and shake him until something like a real expression took over his face. What had she done to this man to make him act like a robot?

"Good morning," Ianto replied politely. "You're up early."

"All thanks to your coffee," Martha waggled her mug at him with a grateful expression because really, it had been great coffee, salvia or not. "It was amazing, thank you."

For a few seconds, Ianto's mask slipped and he looked pleased and surprised at her words. Then the expression smoothed out and he nodded with a friendly but bland smile.

"All part of the job," he replied, reaching out for her mug. "Would you like another cup?"

"I won't say no to that."

So Martha leant back against the counter, watching him as he carefully measured out the coffee. His eyes managed to watch her as he worked, clearly wondering what she was finding so interesting. But Martha stayed silent. Anything she said she knew Ianto would answer with completely polite empty shallow words. She wouldn't get anything real out of him.

"Here you are."

Ianto handed her the refilled mug, his hand slipping away from hers as soon as it could. Martha stared at him; there was no change of expression on his face as he went back to preparing the team's morning drink orders. She felt like screaming, her grip tightening on the mug's handle. It was like trying to talk to a brick wall.

She could handle Owen's snide comments and sneering put-downs, Toshiko's open curiosity, and Gwen's unsubtle attempts at extracting information from her. But Ianto's distant and cold behaviour got to her because she hadn't bloody done anything to deserve it and he wasn't offering her any explanations.

She knew he wouldn't admit to it if she confronted him cos, despite the obvious dislike, he was still cordial and polite towards her. Of course he was. Nothing seemed to get through that shiny protective professionalism he wore at all times.

Or did it? She remembered that crack in the armour, that brief expression of surprise and pleasure at her gratitude, and an idea sparked in her brain. Perhaps she could get through to him and maybe get to the bottom of this.

"Thank you, Ianto."

She stepped forward and squeezed his wrist with her free hand. Ianto froze, then turned his head to glance first at her hand and then at her face. His expression was uncertain.

Martha smiled at him, let go, and headed off with her coffee to write an email for Tom.

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Ianto couldn't work out Martha Jones. She'd turned up one day, literally appearing out of thin air on a breezy stretch of moor land to distract a particularly nasty breed of alien as it was about to bite a chunk out of Gwen's arm. Then, when the alien had been properly dealt with, she'd rushed over to Jack and hugged him. Ianto didn't know what had shocked the team more – Martha's sudden appearance or the hug she'd shared with Jack.

Jack had laughed, spun her around and clung to her for long minutes. Ianto had never forgotten the way Jack introduced her.

"Martha Jones, the woman who saved the world."

"Captain Jack Harkness, the man who can't die," she'd shot back with almost a laugh but her expression had wobbled between a smile and something darker and Jack had smiled at her in a way that Ianto had never seen before.

What had she done to deserve that smile? It was completely genuine, caring and warm. Ianto had felt jealousy and craving gnaw in his guts at that smile, because it wasn't directed at him. It was because of Martha Jones and he couldn't work out why.

It was all made worse by the fact that a wall had come down between him and Jack ever since Jack had returned. Jack still flirted, he could never stop that, but that was it. No more intimate nights together or secret glances of skin on skin. Ianto had known, because he knew Jack, that Jack wasn't looking at what they'd had as long term. But it had become warm and necessary and Ianto hadn't been ready for it to end just yet.

All he could pinpoint the sudden change on was Jack's absence and Martha Jones.

After that day, Martha'd become part of the team and Ianto had taken to watching her. She laughed with Jack and wasn't phased by the alien technology Toshiko began demonstrating to her, but asked questions and told Jack about the last place she'd seen something similar. And all the time Jack watched her with this fond pleasure on his face that he never got when he looked at the team.

She had the same darkness in her eyes that Jack had now. It was different from before, when Jack was full of secrets and kept everything locked up tight inside of him. There had always been loneliness and longing in his eyes for something he never talked about. Now something had happened and Martha had been there and she and Jack shared the burden.

One evening, Ianto found himself researching her on the internet. She had a brother and a sister and both her parents were still alive. She'd gotten good grades at school. She was training to be a doctor. A normal girl with an average life. But Ianto knew that wasn't true. According to Jack, she'd saved the world.

He felt partly disgusted with himself for doing it, for being so unprofessional towards a colleague. But stronger than that was a driving need to know, to understand why she had that side of Jack that he couldn't reach. He had to know. And he told himself, it didn't hurt to know more about new mysterious team members after the incident with Suzie.

All he had was facts, facts without life and they didn't give him the answers he needed.

His professionalism that was so effective at work became a cold hard shield when he spoke to Martha. He was never rude, that would have drawn suspicions from Jack, but he was economical with his words and never interacted with her unless he had to. Because he was sure that she was part of the cause of this distance from Jack and Ianto's resentment was becoming a silent grudge.

Then one day, as he was clearing up the last of the sticky doughnut mess that Owen had left on his workstation, Ianto had spied something in Jack's office. Martha was crying. Her eyes were fixed on some far off point, tears pouring down her face without a sound. Jack was sat beside her with one of his hands clasping both of hers. The look on his face was open and sorrowful and he began talking to Martha in a quiet voice. Ianto had only watched for a few seconds more before slipping away to the kitchen.

All the pieces of Martha Jones that Ianto'd collected didn't give him any answers. He still couldn't see why Jack had changed and how Martha was involved, though he knew she had to be. He kept her at a distance, but she complicated things by being brave and outspoken and telling Owen where he could stick his nasty attitude.

And she was polite to Ianto, thanking him for the coffee he made her and touching his arm. The others treated him like a ghost, but Jack had made him feel solid and real and now Martha did too.

Nothing was making sense. It was beginning to give Ianto a headache.

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"What about Ianto then? What's he really like?"

"Ianto? Ahhh, our man of mystery. There's not much to tell. He's good at his job, he looks good in a suit……"

"No, I mean, what's he like when he's not here, in the Hub? What's he like when he's not wearing that suit?"

"Now, why would you think I'd know that?"

"Jack Harkness, you can't even say that with a straight face!! What's been going on then?"

"A gentleman never tells."

"Oh, so you're a gentleman now?"

"You're very cheeky, Martha Jones. I like that."

"Come on then, tell me!"

"What's with all this sudden interest in Ianto? Wait, are you interested in him!?"

"No! No, he's very closed off, I just wondered why."

"Ah, well, he's had relationship problems. His girlfriend, Lisa, died at the Battle of Canary Warf and he found it hard to let go."

"Oh….I didn't know. My cousin Addie died there, she was working in Torchwood One."

"I'm sorry, Martha."

"That's ok. It feels like years ago now, after everything that's happened."

"Or didn't happen."

"Yeah."

_-tbc_


	2. Chapter 2

Martha couldn't believe that she was the only one who'd noticed. Every time she thanked Ianto for bringing her coffee or for doing something for the team, he always flickered a fractional look of surprise at her. He looked even more startled when she brushed his sleeve or squeezed his shoulder in thanks. She couldn't work out why.

But it shook him out from behind his defences, showed Martha something real in him, and so it felt like progress, like she was making dents in the armour he'd put up against her. Eventually she'd make enough cracks and then he'd talk to her and she'd find out what the hell was going on. Because she couldn't leave things they way they were, . It was interfering with her work.

Then she noticed that the team didn't touch Ianto. They just treated him as though he was part of the Hub, literally part of the furniture. Ianto was like a shadow; everyone knew he was there but they rarely acknowledged him. The whole time he was on the outside and Martha knew then why he was so surprised to be touched.

She didn't talk to the team about it. She was distant from them all apart from Jack. She knew that Gwen, Owen and Toshiko gossiped about her, particularly Owen who was vicious in his sneers about her medical skills and experience in the extraterrestrial field. Gwen and Tosh were friendly and interested and took her seriously, but there was a huge gulf between them and her.

She saw them watch when she talked to Jack. They used to ask her questions until she made it clear she was sticking to the story that she'd worked with Jack before and that was it. So she worked with them and talked to them and occasionally had drinks with them after work, but that was it.

Martha knew what it was like to be on the outside in Torchwood.

There was Jack and only Jack really. They spent time on the shooting range, because Martha was never comfortable with guns, but knew she needed to be while working for Torchwood. They swapped stories about the Doctor and the stupid situations he'd gotten them into and Martha drank in being with someone who really understood all that she couldn't ever tell other people.

Her budding relationship with Tom was going really well, but there was no way she could explain any of this to him, that she'd seen a side of him he probably didn't even know existed yet (though she saw glimpses when he talked about people he couldn't help and his determination not to give up on difficult cases).

She and her family had talked about it a lot in the weeks that had followed the Master's defeat. But after a while her mother got upset when it was brought up and Tish was seeing a therapist and they couldn't tell Leo and Martha just felt frustrated because she needed to talk about it with someone.

It was only a year, but there were so many scars for Jack to explain and images for Martha to purge.

They had each other and she could cry and rant and he'd listen and didn't tell her to pretend it never happened.

"It changed you, Martha, some for the better, some not," he told her one night over tumblers of strong whiskey. "You've got to learn to deal with it all and then move on."

"What, just like that?"

"I'm not saying it's gonna be easy. I'm saying it's part of who you are now and you can't ignore that. You've got to come to terms with it."

"Have you, come to terms with it, I mean?"

"I'm a work in progress," was Jack's serious reply as he clinked his glass against hers.

Martha had Jack and she was lonely, but Ianto had no one. So why was he pushing her away when she was the only one reaching out to him? It didn't make sense.

Then one day, when Martha was taking a break from trying to translate some alien runes with Toshiko, she noticed Ianto watching Jack. Not just watching, staring with this intense look of longing and sorrow on his face that he probably thought no one else had noticed. Martha recognised the expression as one she'd seen in the mirror when she used to think about the Doctor. The realisation was like an electric shock.

Ianto wanted Jack.

And she'd come in and spent most of her time with the Captain. Ianto was jealous; it explained everything. Jack had probably forgotten to mention to Ianto that she had a boyfriend and if she tried to talk to Ianto about it, he'd pretend he didn't know what she was talking about.

God, it was a mess. Martha twisted a hand through her hair with a sigh. How ironic that Ianto was shutting her out when she knew, probably better than anyone else on the team, exactly how he felt. In love with an enigmatic alien man with lots of secrets and who wouldn't ever tell you the whole truth. Yeah, she knew how that felt.

Ianto was there on the outside, unnoticed and wanting Jack, and she just wanted to reach across and tell him it was alright, she wasn't in his way.

Martha sat up at the thought; well, why the hell not?

 

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Ianto enjoyed his morning routine. It was his time alone in the Hub, just him and the dim silence. It was one of the only times in the day when he could completely relax, because no one else was around and he could smile and make noise without any of Owen's comments.

Before, he might have been sleeping in the office with Jack and maybe have shared some long stolen moments before dressing for work. Now, he woke up alone and had to prepare himself to face Martha and Jack in a completely professional manner. It was the time of day when he was most in control.

But when he went into the kitchen that morning, there was a surprise waiting for him. A drink was waiting on the counter. He knew it was for him because there was a post-it note attached with his name on in clear block capitals.

Ianto blinked, trying to make sense of what he was seeing. People didn't make him drinks and there was no one around in the Hub anyway. But the drink was there, recently made if the steam rising from it was any indication. Ianto approached it with great caution. He'd received alien infections through stranger circumstances.

When he lifted the mug for a tentative taste, he was rewarded with his favourite coffee, the one that he always liked to enjoy at the beginning of the day. It tasted good too and he was more than a little flummoxed as to who knew how he liked his coffee.

As he took another cautious sip, there was a clatter of computer keys and he turned to see Martha typing at Suzie's old workstation. His skin crawled; he was certain that she hadn't been there a moment ago. But she was there now, dressed for the day and calmly typing even though Torchwood didn't officially open for another half an hour.

Ianto glanced at his coffee and then up at Martha. Was that her handwriting on the note? He'd only be more surprised if he found out that Owen had offered to clean up his own workstation mess. The only other person in the Hub this early would be Jack and it was a well-known fact among the team that Jack's coffee was undrinkable.

Martha didn't turn as he approached her, but her voice drifted over her shoulder as he reached her workstation.

"Morning, Ianto."

"Good morning, your coffee'll be ready soon. I wasn't expecting you up so early."

Normally Ianto would leave after such an exchange, but this time he stayed and waited until Martha finished whatever she was doing and turned to face him. When he focused on her screen, he saw that she was writing an email.

"I'm just letting my boyfriend know I'll be away for a bit longer," she explained with a rueful smile. "Jack says it's alright to use one of the Hub's computers since Owen uses his to look at dodgy chat rooms."

Her tone was light and confidentially friendly, but Ianto's mind was stuck on her first words. She had a boyfriend. Part of the theory he'd constructed to explain Jack's distance collapsed.

"What's the matter?" Martha looked concerned, then her expression seemed resigned. "You didn't think me and Jack were…..?"

"Oh….oh no, of course not," his defences were slipping and Ianto wanted more than anything to return to the safety of the kitchen where he could gather himself together again.

"Hope I made your coffee alright," Martha gestured to the mug he was still clutching in his hands. "I thought it was time someone did it for you. I bet none of the others have."

Ianto was speechless. His morning had become incredibly bizarre. Martha Jones had made coffee for him and she had a boyfriend. He wondered if this was what going mad felt like.

"Thank you, you didn't have to," Ianto managed, unused to being stuck for words in a place of work. "It was fine."

"Good, you should get someone else to make the drinks sometimes," Martha told him.

"They wouldn't taste as good."

Ianto began to smile back at her as he spoke, but the expression faded as he realised what he was doing. He was behaving as though he and Martha were friends. One coffee couldn't change the fact that he still didn't know how she and Jack had become so close and why Jack's behaviour had changed. Martha seemed to sense that something had happened as her own smile faltered and she crossed her arms.

"Now you're looking at me like that again, like I've done something wrong," she sounded frustrated. "I promise, nothing has ever gone on between me and Jack like that. I'm not your rival or an obstacle or anything."

"I never said you were."

"But I'm not an idiot, Ianto, you treat me like you want me out of Torchwood and I know it's because of Jack," Martha's expression softened a bit. "I know a bit about unrequited love and jealously and……"

"It's not……I mean, it wasn't….." Ianto floundered then shut his mouth tightly.

Without saying another word, he whirled on his heel and marched back to the kitchen. He emptied the mug of coffee doing the sink in a single brutal motion and braced himself against the counter, trying to steady his breathing. He'd always been good at keeping words locked up tight behind his lips. So why now did he begin to unravel, and why had it only taken a relative stranger who he had conditioned himself to resent and her kind unexpected gestures?

He chanced a glance out of the kitchen door and spied Martha looking right back at him, a shocked expression on her face. He cursed loudly in his head. That was not a secret he had wanted Martha privy too. She could say something to Jack.

 

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Martha waited until an evening when they didn't have any extra work to do or any emergencies before she decided to broach the subject with Jack. She checked that Ianto wasn't around, shut the office door, and accepted the glass of amber liquid Jack handed her.

"This isn't any of that hyper-vodka again, is it?" she asked, half-jokingly as she carefully sniffed her drink.

"Not tonight," grinned Jack, taking a sip from his own glass. "That's only for nights that you really don't want to remember in the morning. So what's up?"

"What'd you mean?"

"I mean the way you've got that look on your face like you really want to say something," Jack replied, hitching a hip onto his desk. "There's some very pleasurable techniques I picked up on this great little planet that'd make you forget all about it. Works every time."

"Have you ever tried not solving something with sex?" Martha laughed.

"Maybe a couple of times," conceded Jack. "But not too many."

The two smiled at each other, losing themselves in their drinks for a moment although Martha could feel Jack's eyes pinned to her curiously. For all his charming and flirtatious exterior, Martha had learnt quickly that there was a quick mind behind it and that there wasn't much you could get past Captain Jack Harkness.

She and Jack had quickly developed an open and honest friendship, leaving them pretty much able to talk about anything, no matter how potentially awkward. This felt different, however, since Jack hadn't said anything about a past fling or relationship with Ianto and Ianto was so tight-lipped about it. It felt like it was off-limits

"Alright, I've got the feeling that you don't want to talk about this, but I need to," she started, taking another gulp of the liquid that burned down her throat. "Ianto doesn't like me."

"Ianto? You're serious?" Jack looked mildly surprised.

"Yeah, I know when someone's avoiding me. Owen, I can handle because it's just posturing and insults, but Ianto wants me out of here," Martha twisted her fingers around her glass, concentrating on the liquid sloshing around inside it. "He thought you and I were…..together."

"Easy mistake to make," Jack shrugged. "The others do too, from what I've overheard. Does that bother you?"

"No, not really," Martha stepped closer to the desk, leaning on it before she formed her next words. "But I've seen the way Ianto looks at you, Jack, and I know that there was something between you before I got here."

Jack held her gaze, before planting his glass back on his desk thoughtfully. His whole expression had become more serious and Martha found herself looking at the man who was Torchwood's team leader and the man who'd survived a year of being the Master's tortured captive, rather than her outrageous and understanding friend. She rarely saw that serious and business side of him when it was just the two of them.

"Did he tell you that?" Jack asked at last, with interest.

"No, I think he was about to," Martha replied. "Then he walked off. If it's too private to talk about, I understand. I just want to know, because I can tell he's really upset and he's alone. I know how that feels. I want to understand why he's so angry with me."

There was a pause and Jack nodded, dipping his head to finish off the last of his drink. He didn't refill the glass.

"Never could resist a man in a suit," he cracked with a nostalgic smile. "And Ianto, he's a hell of a temptation. It's odd, but there was a time not long ago when he wanted to kill me. He said I was a monster."

"What happened?"

"I think we'll need a lot of hyper-vodkas for that story," Jack smiled, a sort of hardness glinting in his eyes. "As for Ianto, we had a few beautiful nights together. It was fun."

"Was that all it was, fun?" Martha asked, remembering the look in Ianto's eyes.

"Alright, it was a lot of fun. The things that man can do with a stopwatch……" Jack let the sentence trail off, sounding wistful before shaking his head. "But that was before I met up with you guys and everything happened."

He didn't say anything else and Martha understood. That year had changed her view of what she'd left behind too. Now she was a doctor in her own right with a wonderful boyfriend and she rarely regretted that choice. Jack had changed too, if the questions Toshiko used to ply her with were any indication, but Ianto didn't know why. But Martha could change that for him.

_-tbc_


	3. Chapter 3

IANTO, COME AND FIND ME. IT'S IMPORTANT.

Ianto glared at the note attached to his morning coffee. Talking to Martha was the last thing he wanted to do. Since his almost-revelation, he'd been even more formal with her and avoided her whenever he could. He tried not to look at her, part of him afraid that he'd see pity in her eyes.

She knew something that he had hoped none of the team would discover. That his tryst with Jack had shaken him far more than he ever thought it would and that Jack's current distance hurt him. Ianto hated for anyone to know if and when he was inwardly wounded.

Yes, he really did want to avoid Martha Jones right now. Ideally until she left Torchwood.

But her request might possibly have something to do with Torchwood business. A faint possibility, but one that he had to investigate. Ianto gulped down his coffee, and washed the mug with sure practiced movements that soothed him. He had time before the rest of the team arrived and he became busy for the day and he wanted to get this over with as swiftly as possible.

Martha was nowhere to be seen, however, and Ianto really did not want to investigate the shooting range since he knew Jack would be down there. Being alone with Jack would be worse than being alone with Martha.

Then he heard a squawk and raised his head to catch sight of Martha sitting up on Myfanwy's feeding station. She waved to him with a half-smile and Ianto nodded back and indicated that he would join her. It was a good place to talk, no one would immediately see them up there, and it had more privacy than most places in the Hub.

She was sat close to the edge, one of her legs hanging off, and she looked expectant and poised when Ianto reached her. He stayed standing up.

"I hope you liked your coffee," Martha said quietly.

"It was very good, thank you."

There was an awkward pause, and Ianto fought back the urge to ask her to say exactly what she'd planned to so that he could get on with his day. But he kept his face blank. He'd been working harder to keep his armour up around Martha. Now, he would wait her out and make her do the talking.

"I talked to Jack," Martha shifted so that she was facing him. "He told me about you two."

Ianto felt his face twitch and hoped that Martha hadn't noticed. His mind flicked through all the things that Jack could have told her, and felt betrayal rush headily through him.

"He wasn't specific," Martha replied, clearly trying to reassure him. "But he told me you were together and that that's changed."

She looked at him like she was expecting him to speak, but Ianto kept himself silent. There had to be more for her to say and he wasn't going to prompt her.

"I know why you're angry, but it's not my fault," Martha sighed, suddenly looking incredibly weary. "I'll tell you what I can, you deserve to know. Come and sit down."

"I'd prefer to stand," Ianto bit out, rocking gently on his heels for a moment.

"Fine," Martha got to her feet, a hand massaging the back of her neck which Ianto knew had to ache from spending so many nights on Jack's sofa. "When you and the team were sent to the Himalayas, I was in London with Jack and a friend of ours, the Doctor."

Ianto nodded. He knew the name from the Torchwood One manifesto and files and he'd seen the photographs. He'd always wondered why so many pictures of different men all referred to the same person. But it hadn't been his place to ask so he had speculated in private and gotten on with his work.

"Well, Jack and the Doctor, they got caught by this mad man, this monster. My family were his prisoners too," the darkness was clear in Martha's eyes now and she looked haunted, her eyes fixed on the railing. "That man had plans and we went through hell to stop him. Jack suffered a lot; you've probably seen he's got some new scars. We've all got scars now, and we can't talk about what happened to anyone else because they won't understand."

Her voice was distant, as though she was watching the events she was describing. Ianto watched her carefully, seeing the emotions flicker across her face and assessing her words. He considered himself to be a good judge of people and able to spot liars (a useful trait for someone who worked on the front desk of a secret organisation). Martha's expression was too raw to be a lie. Ianto wasn't sure if he was glad of that or not.

Martha turned her gaze to him and Ianto stopped himself from taking a step backwards. The look in her eyes was intense and sorrowful and incredibly powerful.

"There's so much I can't tell you, Ianto. I saw people die and countries burn and Jack, I know he was tortured," Martha swallowed. "You have to understand, what we went through changed us all."

She moved closer to him and placed a hand on his arm. Ianto found that he couldn't look away from face, from the expression in those eyes. He remembered, suddenly, vividly, Jack's greeting to her.

Martha Jones, the woman who saved the world.

"What happened?"

The quiet words slipped out of Ianto and Martha smiled a smile that didn't reach her eyes, not really. Ianto couldn't believe that he hadn't seen it before; that complete weariness and sorrow held in her eyes. Had it been there the whole time?

"Hell on Earth," was her quiet reply. "I saw devastation you wouldn't believe. But we survived, Jack survived and I am so sorry that he's hurt you. I don't know if he'll come back to you. But he needs time to come to terms with all we saw first."

She managed an odd smile then and squeezed his arm and Ianto found himself smiling back at her. He didn't know what caused the smile, but he knew that in that moment, he'd seen what an extraordinary woman Martha Jones was.

"It's what I've got to do too and Jack's helped a lot. We're works in progress," Martha's smile was almost a laugh now. "I'm going to leave Torchwood soon and I want you to know something before I go."

Another step closer brought Martha right into Ianto's personal space and then she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. Ianto was so shocked at the contact that he didn't react until she started to move away, his hands grasping her elbows fleetingly. Martha smiled and stepped back so that no part of her was touching him.

"What you do matters, Ianto," she told him, leaning on the railing as though nothing unusual had happened. "The team don't see it, but I do and I think Jack does too. I know it feels like you don't exist sometimes, I know because I've felt like that before, but what you do is important. Don't forget that."

Something warm spread throughout Ianto and he found his features stretching into a surprised smile as he watched Martha make her way down to the floor below.

 

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_Tom,_

_Get those drinks ordered in because I'm coming home! Yes, I do mean it this time. Cardiff's been great, I really needed this time away. I've missed you a lot (what are the chances? Joking!). I'm getting the train on Saturday, probably at 1pm? Want to meet me at the station? _

_See you soon_

_Martha_

_xxx_

Martha clicked 'send' and watched the screen change with a smile. It was definitely time to get back home. She'd been feeling restless for the past few days, knowing that there wasn't much else she could do for Torchwood now. They were back to their regular routine of monsters and aliens and they didn't need her for that.

Jack had told her that he was keeping her on speed dial though for alien emergencies and that when things quietened now, he'd come and visit her. Martha could only imagine the chaos he'd cause when surrounded by all those adoring nurses.

"So our mystery bird is leaving us."

Owen's voice loudly travelled to Martha from just outside the main doors and a moment later the team poured into the Hub. Tosh and Gwen were carrying something charred and gleaming under their arms that they immediately headed up to Jack's office with, whilst Ianto made a beeline for the kitchen, Owen hot on his heels.

"Good riddance to her, her and her crap-arsed theories," Owen wasn't lowering his volume and Martha headed for the kitchen, keeping her steps slow and silent. So Owen knew about her upcoming departure. "And what do we know about her? Shit all."

"I suggest you ask her," was Ianto's reply amid the clink of crockery being moved about. "It isn't our business."

"Bollocks it isn't. She's part of the team, it's all our business."

"Jack vouched for her."

Owen snorted at that and then there were more voices and then Gwen and Tosh swept right past Martha into the kitchen. Martha smiled; her TARDIS key had been incredibly useful during her time at Torchwood.

"Coffee, Gwen?"

"Oh ta, Ianto. Just what I need. We're going to start analysing the remains soon, Jack's just taking a look at them."

"We should be able to get a reading off the……" Toshiko's voice trailed off. "Owen?"

"Next to nothing we know about that Jones bird and now she's leaving. I'm gonna be glad to see the back of her."

"Oh, she's not so bad, Owen. It's only you who can't stand her," Gwen laughed.

"She sticks her nose in where it doesn't belong," Owen retorted, sounding sulky and like a teenager. "And all Jack says is 'she's got experience.' Yeah? Experience in what I'd like to know."

"I looked her up," that was Toshiko, quiet and thoughtful. "To check on her when she first arrived. She works in London as a doctor, she's fully qualified."

"So she's got experience as a doctor, how does that make her suitable for Torchwood?" demanded Owen.

"Still, she'll be gone soon," Gwen pointed out. "And she's helped us out. Stop whinging, Owen."

"I don't whinge!" Owen was indignant. "That bird's gotten under my feet since she arrived here, acting like she knows things I don't."

"Maybe that's because she does," Ianto's voice was clear and steady, as though reporting the weather. "And her name is Martha."

Martha grinned as Ianto swept out of the kitchen with a coffee for Jack, leaving a shocked silence behind him.

_-tbc_


	4. Chapter 4

Martha said goodbye to the team in the Hub before Jack walked her out to her car. She had a large stuffed rucksack and was dressed in the same professional and sleek black clothing she'd arrived in. She looked as though she belonged in Torchwood. But she had changed in Ianto's eyes. Perhaps it was because he knew more about her.

What she had vaguely described to him had sounded horrific, the look in her eyes telling him of images she was trying to forget. He'd tried to find out more details on the internet but there was nothing, no events, attached to Martha Jones that fitted the fuzzy tale she'd told him. Whatever it was, it somehow fitted seamlessly alongside her time as a doctor.

"This is weird," Martha slid her hands into her pockets. "Thanks for having me here, guys. Jack's got me on speed dial if you need me again."

Owen muttered something, but Gwen stepped on his foot and he shut up, glaring mutinously at her. Martha hugged Gwen, then Toshiko, both a little awkwardly and murmuring something Ianto couldn't quite catch with a bright and friendly smile for them both. She managed to persuade Owen to shake her hand very briefly before she reached Ianto.

Ianto didn't know how he felt now that Martha was leaving. She'd told a little more about Jack and she'd made him coffee. She'd smiled and thanked him. He realised, to his slight surprise, that he was going to miss her.

Martha dropped her pack to the ground and smiled at him. Ianto wasn't entirely sure how he was going to say goodbye, but as he opened his mouth Martha surprised him again. She stepped forward, slid her arms around his neck with a mischievous grin only he could see, and pressed a brief but firm kiss to his lips. Frozen in shock, Ianto could only stare as she smiled at him.

"Bye, Ianto," she said, before dropping her voice to a whisper. "Give him time. Call me if you need someone to talk to."

With a final squeeze and a smile, she let him go and turned to Jack who was grinning widely at them both. He indicated that she should walk ahead of him. Martha waved at the team for a final time (Gwen, Tosh and Owen all staring at her in shock), her eyes lingering on Ianto for a few seconds, then she was out of the doors.

"Bloody hell, Ianto!" Owen burst out. "What was all that about?"

Ianto took in the expressions on the team's faces and allowed a tiny smirk to cross his face. He was going to miss Martha, she understood the team in a way that perhaps no one else did.

"I should think that was fairly obvious, don't you?" was his reply as he turned on his heel and headed for the kitchen.

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"So you and Ianto Jones, huh?"

Martha laughed as she and Jack paused outside the Millennium Centre. It was a chilly day and she was really glad she was wearing her leather jacket. It had served her well during a Russian winter that had caused her to completely redefine what she thought cold weather was. There weren't many people about yet and Martha could feel the cool metal of her TARDIS key against her skin.

"He does look good in a suit," she conceded, in a tone that made both her and Jack laugh.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay longer?" there was yearning in Jack's eyes as he spoke that Martha really understood but she shook her head.

"Torchwood's yours, Jack, not mine. I've got my own life now and I've got Tom, it's what I want."

Jack nodded and she knew he understood. The Year that Wasn't had shown them both what was important. For Jack, it was his team and it was Torchwood, for Martha it was her family and her own life.

"I'll always come back if you need me," she promised. "And thank you, for having me here and listening to me."

"It was a pleasure, Martha Jones," Jack replied with a wide gleaming smile. "You come back anytime you want to."

"I will," she said, meaning it. "Cardiff's a great place for a holiday."

"Oh yeah, I can see why you think that," laughed Jack. "As long as you avoid the Weevils and don't step in the goop the aliens leave behind."

"That's my idea of a good time." She wasn't sure if she was being sarcastic or not.

"Mine too," Jack's smile was softer now. "You sure you don't want me to come to the station with you?"

"I'll be fine, you've got work to do. Alien artefacts to identify, the world to defend," Martha smiled, a little nostalgia tugging in her stomach. "Look after the team for me, especially Ianto."

"Why do you say that?" Jack looked curious, almost frowning and Martha couldn't tell if it was just an act or not. It was so hard to tell sometimes with Jack. He was still part-con man.

"He needs looking after," Martha replied. "He might pretend he doesn't, but he does. He's a bit like me, I think, that's why."

Jack was looking at her intently now, the way she'd seen him look at people in one of the Hub's interrogation rooms. The expression stayed only in his eyes for a few moments before he nodded and shrugged casually. Others who didn't know Jack as well might not have seen the seriousness at all.

"I'll keep an eye on him," was his reply.

"Thanks."

They smiled at each other, the breeze tugging their hair and chilling their skin. Then Jack scooped her up into a hug that was much like the one he'd greeted her with, taking her off her feet and loosing a laugh from her throat. Martha clung onto him, feeling the cool brass of his coat buttons. How would she have got through this without Jack?

Jack released her to the ground and kissed her sweetly on the mouth. It was more than a friendly kiss, but definitely more chaste than she expected from Jack. She squeezed his hand, shrugged her backpack on, and headed off towards the station, her heart feeling lighter as she thought about what she'd left behind and what was waiting for her.

 

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Ianto was cleaning Jack's office when his boss got back, a steaming mug of coffee waiting beside the latest reports for UNIT. Jack smiled in thanks, but looked thoughtful as he sat down behind his desk. Ianto wondered what Martha had said to cause the quietness, but he kept his head down and worked.

"The coffee's good, Ianto."

"Thank you, sir. I'm going to be cleaning in here whilst you work, if that's alright," Ianto favoured his boss with a brief smile. "I got a bit behind after that field trip yesterday."

"That's fine."

There was a pause and then Jack spoke again.

"So…..you and Martha, huh?"

Jack's tone was teasing, and Ianto felt himself smiling in response. For a few seconds, it felt like Jack's absence hadn't happened. But it had, and there was still a distance between them. At least now he had part of an answer as to why and he had Martha Jones to thank for it. He kept the smile on his face and spoke the truth he'd come to realise.

"She's not really my type, sir," he replied. "But she's a friend."

He didn't elaborate, despite Jack's cocked eyebrow and questioning expression. Like that, Jack almost looked back to his old self, the self that the team had sometimes seen and Ianto had enjoyed after hours. He could still see the darkness in Jack's eyes, but Ianto sensed that something had lifted. Martha had helped more than one person during her time in Cardiff.

As he finished up the cleaning and turned to say goodbye to Jack, Ianto felt a firm hand on his shoulder. Jack had gotten to his feet and was now looking at him with a serious expression, his face bathed in shadows. Jack had touched him. Ianto held his gaze, wondering what was going to happen.

"Thanks, Ianto."

Ianto got the feeling that Jack wasn't just talking about the cleaning, but he could see the other team members watching through the glass with a blatant nosiness that he thought only Owen possessed. He didn't feel like giving them anymore of a show, so he settled for a nod, his fingers touching Jacks briefly, and a smile.

"I'll be going now, sir," he said, his voice smooth and professional without a hint of an undertone. "I'm here when you need me."

He caught a glimpse of Jack's slight surprise and subsequent smile as he turned back towards the door and felt like grinning himself. Things were changing again, but this time Ianto didn't mind at all.

_-end_


End file.
